To issue a general guide to British bird watching in a single article would be to do a dishonour to the fantastically varied bird life of the winter season… but here goes!
Late October sees the arrival of winter immigrants – the thrushes and wild geese return to their seasonal spots. The wintery British countryside is rife with seasonal visitors and natives alike. Take up post with a pair of binoculars to spot the UK’s most common bird of prey – the common buzzard, the most hover-obsessed bird of prey – the kestrel, or the splendid little lapwing (listen of the distinctive “pee-wit” call!)
Sling the bird watching binoculars in a rucksack and head to one of the UK’s tidal estuaries to catch a glimpse of the likes of pink-footed geese (fresh from their summer abodes in Iceland) heading inland to feed. Wading birds love tidal estuaries. The shallow tidal waters and mudflats are habitat of choice for the likes of cormorants, avocets, herons and the magnificent great crested grebe.
High tide sees an inland flow of birds pushed off their feeding grounds by the advancing water. Avid twitchers arrive well before high tide and settle down with their bird watching binoculars to witness both feeding habits and the inland mini-migration.
Wintering birds of prey also love the British coastal habitat. The ospreys may be wintering in Africa (returning in March) but filling their place in the sight of many a pair of binoculars is the diminutive merlin falcon, peregrine falcon and hen harrier.
Perhaps the most festively iconic bird of the winter season has to be the robin. The UK’s fascination with robins seems to be intrinsically linked with their cheeky rambunctious nature (brave little robins will often watch gardeners dig and pilfer worms on the spot!) Spotting a robin is usually easy as a couple of minutes staring out of the window – certainly worth the effort to meet this little guy!
